Chapter 90: A Sweet Awakening

I made the decision to go to the festival with Presia, but that was only my own thought.

If, despite my plans, Presia had no intention of leaving her room during the festival, or even if she did come out but had no intention of spending time with me, then I would have just been getting ahead of myself for no reason.

Even if she wasn’t assigned to a particular class, as a professor in the Magic Department, she might have some scheduled responsibilities.

With that in mind, I headed to Room 707 of the Magic Hall to set up an appointment with Presia.

“Boss?”

As expected, even in the middle of the day, Room 707 was dark due to the blackout curtains.

Presia, their owner, was asleep, so Bear and Bunny were simply slumped under the sofa.

Still, it seemed they heard the creaking sound of the door opening because Bear and Bunny turned their heads towards me.

Of course, since I had business with Presia, I was planning to wake her up, but for now, I simply raised my hand and waved lightly in greeting.

With light, bouncy steps, the two stuffed animals approached me. Since they couldn’t speak, they welcomed me by twirling around me in circles.

Even as I walked forward, I was careful not to step on the two little ones spinning around me as I approached Presia.

A single small magic lamp cast a dim glow across the room, and I knelt down on the floor in front of the sofa.

“Hmm…”

As I gently stroked Presia’s hair, who was sleeping soundly right in front of me, she let out a small murmur and shifted her body on the narrow sofa.

“Boss, would you mind waking up for a moment?”

I felt bad shaking her awake, so I lightly stroked her head and called out to her softly.

If it were Anne, I wouldn’t be able to wake her up just by calling her name softly; I’d have to shake her shoulders and shout loudly. But Presia, even in her sleep, heard my small voice and slowly returned from her dreams.

Even though she had woken up, her eyelids still looked heavy, and her eyes were unfocused.

Presia’s green eyes, reminiscent of a vast meadow, finally found me and met my gaze.

“Uung…”

Then, just like a child throwing a tantrum, Presia reached out her small arms toward me while still lying on the sofa.

It was a sight I would never see if she were fully awake. But lately, whenever she was groggy from sleep, she would occasionally act her age and behave like a child.

Although, to say she was acting her age was a bit of a stretch since she was only two years younger than me.

Lifting Presia, who had become a large baby, I sat her upright on the sofa. However, as soon as she sat down, she immediately started to slump over again, so I quickly sat next to her to keep her from collapsing.

Her leaning body rested against mine, and her small face ended up resting on my shoulder.

“It’s okay.”

Bear climbed onto the table, seemingly intending to pour me tea since Presia couldn’t do it with magic in her current state, but today, I decided to decline his offer.

Since I had rushed over before Presia made any other appointments, I needed to leave soon.

Unfortunately, I didn’t have enough time to sit and leisurely drink tea.

“Boss? I came because I have something to say.”

I gently shook Presia, who was still leaning on me, to wake her up again.

However, instead of answering me, she simply let out small, soft breaths—she had already fallen back asleep.

Even though she had woken up so easily a moment ago, it seemed that this time, her return to dreamland had led to an even deeper sleep.

Just as I was wondering if I should leave and come back later, Bunny, who had been sitting under the sofa, looked up at me while holding a small box.

Inside Bunny’s arms was a cream puff from the famous bakery, the kind that required standing in line from early morning just to buy.

Despite being made of fabric, Bunny’s large, round eyes gleamed with anticipation as he looked up at me.

I was about to refuse again, but then I happened to glance at the table and noticed Bear.

Sitting dejectedly on the table, fiddling absentmindedly with a teacup, Bear’s stuffed-animal eyes somehow looked pitiful.

“…Just one cup, then.”

I couldn’t bring myself to say I would leave after seeing Bear and Bunny looking at me like that.

The moment I agreed, Bear and Bunny’s expressions visibly brightened.

Alright. They were that happy, so I could afford to push my schedule back a little.

Bear, acting as if nothing had happened, quickly placed a teacup in front of me and skillfully tilted the teapot, while Bunny hopped onto the table and carefully pulled out the cream puff.

“Thanks for the treat.”

Presia, the actual owner, hadn’t given permission, so I wondered if it was really okay to accept just because Bear and Bunny offered.

But the temptation of the cream puff was not something I could easily resist.

After all, as a student, I couldn’t stand in line early in the morning on a weekday, and the bakery didn’t even open on weekends, making it nearly impossible to get my hands on one.

Considering how difficult it was to obtain, Presia might be upset when she woke up and saw it missing…

Sorry, Bunny. You’ll have to take the blame for me.

If Presia asked, I would have no choice but to use Bunny’s name.

Of course, not eating it was not an option.

Setting aside Bunny’s eager gaze, I had really wanted to try this cream puff.

However, since Presia was still leaning against me, it was uncomfortable to drink tea or eat the cream puff, so I carefully shifted her position so she was lying on my lap.

Come to think of it, I once rested my head on Celian’s lap like this before.

I brushed Presia’s tousled hair back into place and slowly reached for the cream puff.

Before tasting such a luxurious treat, I needed to prepare myself.

First, I took a sip of the tea Bear had poured.

The dryness in my mouth was washed away, leaving behind the fragrant aroma of the tea.

But I didn’t immediately reach for the cream puff.

If I ate it right away, the lingering taste of the tea might overpower the cream puff’s true flavor.

So I waited, savoring the aroma of the tea for a moment.

Once the taste of the tea had faded from my mouth, I finally reached for the cream puff.

It was a bit too large to eat in one bite.

If I still had my male body, I would have just taken a big, unceremonious bite, but since I was now smaller, I had no choice but to take several small bites.

Holding the cream puff in both hands, I slowly brought it to my mouth.

And at last, I took my first bite.

A satisfying crunch from the outer pastry was followed by the rich sweetness of the custard filling that filled my mouth.

The flavor was so intense that I completely forgot the taste of the tea I had just drunk.

I licked the bit of cream that had smeared on my lips, unwilling to waste even a drop.

The cream puff in my hand still required at least two more bites before it was completely finished.

If I were still a man, I could have devoured it in one bite, but at moments like this, I didn’t mind having a smaller body. It was a silly thought, but honestly… anyone who tasted this divine cream puff would think the same way.

If you want to criticize me, eat one of these first. If you still feel like complaining afterward, then be my guest—if you can.

Even while indulging in all these trivial thoughts, I kept taking bite after bite, and before I knew it, the entire cream puff was gone.

I savored the lingering sweetness in my mouth for a moment before taking a sip of tea to cleanse my palate.

There had been two cream puffs in the box that Bunny had pulled out, meaning there was still one left.

However, I wasn’t shameless enough to take the last one as well.

Of course, considering I had already eaten one without permission, I didn’t exactly have much of an argument.

Instead of bringing the remaining cream puff to my mouth, I moved it toward Presia, who was still resting comfortably on my lap.

The moment the cream puff touched her lips, I felt her flinch against my thigh.

“Come on now. If you don’t wake up soon, I’ll eat the last one too.”

Only then did Presia, with the cream puff half-forced into her mouth, groggily sit up.

“Mmfh… What… is this…?”

With the cream puff in her mouth, her words were muffled, but I could still guess what she was trying to say.

“I saw you peeking when I took my second bite.”

“…You saw that?”

Realizing she had been caught sneaking a glance, Presia’s face turned red.

But if that was embarrassing for her, then shouldn’t I be even more ashamed for secretly eating the cream puff in the first place?

“I’m sorry. You probably really wanted one too, but I ate it without asking…”

She must have wanted it so badly that she couldn’t help but watch me eat.

And yet, she had been considerate enough to stay silent, ensuring I didn’t feel awkward.

Honestly, why was everyone around me so incredibly kind?

“It’s fine. I wasn’t saving it for Elysia or anything… I got it as a gift and just stored it away.”

“This cream puff isn’t just expensive—it’s hard to buy in the first place. You got it as a gift? And that fancy cookie last time too… I guess when you’re at your level, you receive gifts from all over.”

“Uh, yeah… I guess so?”

Suddenly, I recalled my homeroom professor, Ferrent.

Forget receiving high-end cream puffs—his office was filled with nothing but odd herbal candies. I suppose gifts suited their recipients, and in his case, he was every bit the middle-aged man he seemed.

“Oh, you have cream on your face.”

Since I had practically shoved the cream puff into her mouth, some cream had smeared at the corner of her lips.

I wasn’t shameless enough to steal the cream puff from her hand, so instead, I used the excuse of wiping her mouth to swipe the cream with my finger and pop it into my own mouth.

“Yum.”

The pastry was good, but the sweetness of this cream was truly indescribable.

Worried that Presia might catch on to my pathetic desperation, I quickly wiped the expression from my face and glanced at her.

For some reason, she was staring at me with wide, flushed eyes.

“Boss?”

Even after I called out to her, Presia just kept staring before lowering her gaze to the cream puff in her hand.

I tilted my head in confusion, wondering why she wasn’t responding.

“Boss—mmph!”

Before I could finish, Presia suddenly clamped both hands over my mouth. And yet, she still held her cream puff in one hand.

Which meant… she had just shoved her half-eaten cream puff against my lips.

“E-Elysia, you eat it! I only need one bite!”

So she had noticed how embarrassingly desperate I was.

I had tried to be subtle, but thinking back, it was obvious. There was no way she wouldn’t have noticed.

As Presia removed her hand, the cream puff she had pressed against my mouth started slipping, so I quickly caught it before it could fall.

In the rush, some cream had gotten on my lips. I swiftly ran my tongue around my mouth, licking it all up.

“Heh…”

I let out a small, sheepish chuckle as Presia continued to stare at me.

Feeling increasingly embarrassed, I hurriedly took two more bites and finished the rest of the cream puff.

“Here, Boss. Have some tea.”

Hoping to divert her attention, I held out the teacup.

Since Bear had only poured one cup, I ended up offering her the one I had already half-finished.

But instead of taking the teacup, Presia simply leaned in and placed her lips on the rim.

I couldn’t help but smile at her sleepy, childlike behavior before carefully tilting the cup for her.

Having just woken up and eaten a rich cream puff, she must have been parched because she drank every last drop.

As soon as I set the empty cup back on the table, Bear immediately moved to refill it. But seeing this reminded me of why I had come here in the first place.

Raising a hand to signal that I didn’t need more tea, I turned to Presia.

“Oh, right. Boss.”

“Mm? What is it?”

“If you don’t have any plans for Celestial Festival, would you like to spend a day with me?”

“O-Of course! It’s the fourth day, right? I already cleared my schedule for that, so don’t worry!”

“That’s a relief. I was worried you’d be too busy. You’re not forcing yourself just for me, are you…?”

Knowing how kind and considerate she was, I had to make sure she hadn’t pushed aside any important plans for my sake.

“It’s nothing like that.”

“Hehe, then we’re set for the fourth day. You promised.”

“Yeah, I promise.”

After locking pinkies with Presia to confirm our plans, I quickly hurried off to catch up with my delayed schedule.

…Wait.

Did I ever mention the fourth day?

Well, I must have said it first for Presia to bring it up like that.